Water-gage and check-valve.



C. I. WILLIAMS. WATER GAGE AND CHECK VALVE. APPLIOATION I'ILBD MAY 23,1907.

1,096,481. Patented May 12, 1914. V

CHARLES I. WILLIAMS, OF U'IICA, NEW YORK.

WATER-GAGE AND CHECK-VALVE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 12, 1914.

Application filed May 23, 1907. Serial No. 375,223.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES I. humans, a citizen of the United States,residing at Utica, in the county of Oneida and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in lVater-Gages andChock-Valves, of which the following is a spcification, reference beinghad therein to the accompanying drawing.

My invention relates to an improved water gage and check valve, and Ideclare that the following is a full, clear, concise and exactdescription thereof, sufficient to enable one skilled in the art to makeand use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings inwhich like letters and numerals refer to like parts throughout.

In a device of the character described there are certain features orelements which are essential and which are related to the uses to whichthe article is to be put.

The ordinary construction and uses of the present mechanism are wellunderstood. But various conditions and emergencies are to be considered.For instance, the glass of such a device sometimes breaks while underboiler pressure and the pieces are apt to do serious harm as also thesteam and water which consequently escape. To meet such cases variousmeans have been proposed to prevent the glass pieces from flying andautomatically shut off the steam and water. Corrosion of the interiorparts is, also, an objection to the use of some styles of such articles,as also the inconvenience of access in case of repairs or cleaning andof as sembling the parts of the gage and check. Furthermore, economy ofmanufacture is a desideratum, together with the capability of the deviceto answer all the demands of its use.

The construction which I here describe and illustrate in one formcomprises several new features, being designed to meet the severalrequirements and being also of a convenient and economical form andstyle.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a side view of a gage, the casing beingshown in section. Fig. 2 is a bottom view. Fig. 3 is a partial view asin Fig. 1, showing the valve in a difierent position, the dotted linesin Figs. 1 and 3 showing different positions of operative parts. Figs.4:, 5, and 6 show modifications. Fi 7 is a partial sectional view online 77 of Fig. 1.

Referring to the figures in detail, 1 is the casing which is adapted atone end, 2, to be mounted on the water column or boiler and at the otherend, 3, is adapted to receive the usual valve stem and mountings. It isto be noted. that the casing is of a single casting of compact form andsymmetrical outline. The interior of the casing is divided by apartition wall into two chambers, one of which, 5, receives a check orvalve disk 13, one wall being bored for plug (3, by the removal of whichconvenient access is given to the interior for the assembling of theparts and for cleaning the interior in case the style of casing as shownin Fig. 1 is used. Otherwise the casing may have the form shown in Fig.5, for the purpose to be mentioned. The other chamber, 7, contains valvemembers, and its wall is bored for the mounting of a pet-cock, the borebeing closed by plug 8 when the casing with its parts is used at theupper end of the water gage, the construction of the same being suchthat it can. be used at either top or bottom by simply inverting it andreplacing the plug 8 with a pet-cock, not shown, or vice versa. The wallof chamber 7 is also bored to receive the usual bushing and washer tosupport the water-glass tube 9 of the gage. The member 10 which has thevalve seats consists of a thimble shown as screw-threaded extcriorly tofit into a bore in the partition in the interior of the casing betweenthe chambers 5 and 7, whereby I provide renewable seats. The thimble ismade of non-corrosive material, since corrosion of the parts in such adevice destroys its use. At the end toward chamber 7 the thimbleterminates in a bevel as shown, the valve 11 being formed of a disk witha corresponding bevel to contact with the seat when the valve stem isturned. The beveled end of the valve seat is notched at opposite points,12, 12, so that it can be easily screwed into place, being insertedthrough the opening provided for the valve-stem bushing. At the oppositeend, the thimble when seated, projccts slightly beyond the wall of thecasin Thus the thimble has a valve-seat at each end. By having thisthimble easily removable I provide renewable valve-seats which is animportant feature. Suitable closure means may be provided to close thevalve at the other valve-seat, as member or disk 13.

The valve-stem 4 is extended in member 1% beyond the valve disk 11 andat a distance from the disk has a shoulder 15 and extends beyond thatpoint in a smaller stem 16 on which the check valve or disk 13 isslidably mounted, the stem being capped by screw 17. The threadedportion by which valve-stem 4 is mounted in the casing is of limitedlength, sothat it can be unscrewed or withdrawn a less distance thanthat between shoulder 15 and screw or cap 17 The form and proportion ofthe parts is such,-.also, that withdrawal of the stem cannot force thedisk 13 to the seat nor hold it there by use of the valve.

In case a gage-glass breaks and a new one is put in, sudden admission ofsteam is likely to break the glass and for that reason a small leakageis usually provided at or near the check or safety valve. In some casesthis is done by guttering the valve-disk, but that is not satisfactorysince corrosion is apt to close the gutter. In my design I provide aminute sluice 18 through the non-corrosive thimble 10. which permitsslight leakage, not enough to interfere with the insertion of a newglass but sufficient to allow the glass to be gradually filled and theequilibrium of pressure to become reestablished. The other means towhich I referred as a provision for safety of the devices consists insurrounding the gage-glass by a plurality of rods 19, mounted in disks20 adjacent each end of the glass. The use of two or more such rods inmerely assembling the parts of such a device is familiar but not withreference to the safety of the construction. An inclosing tube has alsobeen used, slitted for observation of the glass, but that isinconvenient. I provide a plurality of such rods, which incidentallyperform the holding function, but act as guards and prevent thepromiscuous flying of broken glass while it allows sight of the glassfrom any point. The rods may be of such size and as closely arranged asdesired.

I have spoken of bypass 18, but in Fig. 4: I illustrate another means ofproviding this which consists in having the stem 16 slightly channeledlongitudinally, as at 21., to allow proper amount of leakage, or ifdesired the support of disk 13 on the stem may be made loose enough, asin Fig. 7 to permit proper leakage. In Fig. 6 is shown a differentbypass in thimble 10.

I have pointed out the fact that the casing is made of simple and cheapform and each casing is interchangeable, for use at the top or bottom.In Fig. 1 I show one wall bored for plug 6 whereby convenient access ishad to chamber 5. A form of casing is indicated in Fig. 5 in which noprovision is made for such plug, it being possible to assemble the partswithout providing for such access.

It will be noticed that the outside diameter of the thimble 10 isgreater than that of the disk 13.

In assembling the parts the disk is dropped into chamber 5, the thimble10 is screwed into place, the valve and stem inserted, the valve stempicking up the disk which, by proper handling of the casing, slips downthe stem, and screw 17 is inserted by. proper means operating throughoutlet member 2, or, if preferred the outlet member may have sufficientdiameter to allow insertion of disk 13 therethrough, as in Figs. 1 and2. hen valve 13 has been forced to its seat, equilibrium of pressure isestablished through the bypass, or equivalent means. Turning the stem lto the right, or inscrewing of the stem, forces valve or disk 13 intoits chamber and opens the valve. WVhile the withdrawal of the stem, ifefiected without changing the contacting surfaces of the stem and thedisk, or if thecontact of the two was at all close, might draw disk 7 13back, it is found in actual use that, by reason of the loo-seness ofsuch contact and the fact that the contact surfaces are con tinuallychanged through the rotation of the stem, the latter can be withdrawnwithout drawing the disk 13 back to its seat.

While I have shown the invention in one form with certain modifications,it is evident that other changes may be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is:

1. In a device of the character described, a casing, adapted for use ateither end of a water gage, the casing having a partition therein, aremovable thimble inserted in thepartition, the said thimble consistingof a non-corrosive material removably mounted and having a valve-seat ateach end, a valvestem with a valve-disk thereon to close one end of thethimble and a valve-disk slidably mounted thereon to close the other endof the thimble, substantially'as described.

2. In a device of the character described, a casing, a removablenon-corrosive thimble therein having a valve-seat at each end thereof, avalvestem with a disk fixed thereon to close one valve-seat and a diskmovable on the stem to close the other valveseat, the valve-stem beingformed to be stopped in opening-the former valve before the latter diskis forced to its valve-seat, substantially as described.

3. In a device of the character described, a casing having a partitiontherein, a thimble in the partition having a valve-seat on each sidethereof and aby-pass therethrough, a valve-stem passing through thevalve-seats, disks on the stem adapted to close each valve-seat, theinterior length of the stem when in its extreme outward position beinggreater than the distance between the disks in their extreme separatedposition, substantially as shown.

4:. A deiiee of the character described comprising an integral casinghaving a wall therein providing two interior chambers, a non-corrosivethimble screw-mounted in the wall and directly connecting the chambersand having a by-pass therein, a valve-stem extending through one chamberand through the thimble and into the other chamber in reduced form,means freely slidable on the valve-stem and adapted to close one of thevalve-seats of the thimble, substantially as described.

5. In a device of the character described,

a casing, a valve-seat, a valve stem with its inner end free, anautomatic check-valvedisk mounted to slide on the free end of the stem,the stem being provided with means to force said disk from the seat toopen the valve, the inclosed portion of the stem when in extreme outerposition of the valve-stem extending beyond the said disk whenin.position against the valve seat, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aflix Iny signa ture in presence of twowitnesses.

CHARLES I. WILLIAMS. l/Vitnesses HENRY M. LovE, ELEANOR T. Du GIORGI.

Copies 01' this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

